The present invention relates to vehicle transport trailers. More particularly, it relates to a drive-over fender for a vehicle transport trailer that will collapse when a vehicle drives over it and return back to its original position as the vehicle weight is removed.
Drive-over fenders have previously been used on vehicle transport trailers. Typically, such fenders are used on trailers designed for transporting heavy equipment or automobiles. Drive-over fenders are used in order to provide a trailer with a lower deck, which provides a number of advantages, including improved trailer stability and a lower ramp height, which allows for easier loading of a vehicle onto the deck.
These previously-known drive-over fenders are positioned over the trailer tires and are fixed in height so that vehicles having a relatively wide wheelbase must drive over the fenders into position on the transport trailer. This requires the drive-over fenders to have a relatively low profile with respect to the trailer deck, i.e. to have a height that is a relatively small distance above the deck. Because the fenders also must have adequate clearance above the trailer tires, the required low profile of the fenders dictates the height of the deck above the ground and restricts the ability to provide a deck that is lower than that height.
It is an object of the present invention, therefore, to provide a drive-over fender for a transport trailer that allows the trailer to have a lower deck.
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description that follows, and in part will be apparent from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations pointed out in the appended claims.